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United States Various: Rubén Rengel, Stephanie Zyzak (violins), Halam Kim (viola) Laura Andrade (cello), Amir Farsi (flute), Yasmina Spiegelberg (clarinet), Nicholas Hooks (bassoon), Cort Roberts (French horn), Joanne Kang (piano), Ensemble Connect. Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, New York, 21.2.2023. (RP)
Higdon – Dark Wood
Mozart – Quintet for Piano and Winds in E-flat main, Ok.452
Michi Wiancko – 7 Kinships
R. Schumann – Piano Quintet in E-flat main, Op.44
Ensemble Connect returned to Weill Recital Hall with a program of chamber music that was as thrilling to observe because it was to listen to. As regular, the musicians took the ‘connect’ side of the ensemble’s mission to coronary heart, with certainly one of them introducing each bit. Their remarks weren’t simply verbal program notes however served as an invite to view the compositions as a performer would possibly.
The first piece was Jennifer Higdon’s Dark Wood. Composed in 2001, it’s scored for the weird mixture of string trio plus bassoon. Higdon’s objective was to characteristic the bassoon as a solo instrument on a par with the others, versus its customary supporting position in a chamber ensemble or an orchestra. The title refers back to the materials from which the bassoon is made.
The first sounds heard have been burps of sound performed by bassoonist Nicholas Hooks, answered by the opposite devices. A frenzied romp, it’s enhanced with particular results akin to screechy sounds from the strings, ready piano and ethereal harmonics yielding to a lyrical interlude during which Hooks performed a wistful melody. Although the bassoon is featured prominently, the opposite three have their components – Higdon simply made it a matter of steadiness.
We are inclined to suppose nearly each measure that Mozart composed is the work of a genius, however he was a extra discerning critic of his personal efforts. He, nevertheless, singled out the Quintet for Piano and Winds in E-flat main as the very best work that he had written in his whole life. Granted he was solely 28, and extra would come earlier than his dying seven years later, however there have been over 400 entries in his private catalog at that time so he had some foundation for comparability.
Mozart scored the quintet for the weird mixture of piano, clarinet, oboe, bassoon and horn. A flute was substituted for the oboe, which lent a lighter, considerably extra refined air to the efficiency. Flutist Amir Farsi performed together with his regular elan, Cort Roberts produced meltingly lovely sounds on the French horn and clarinetist Yasmina Spiegelberg performed with ardour. Pianist Joanne Kang supplied the bedrock for this energetic but lyrical rendition.
The live performance additionally marked the New York premiere of Michi Wiancko’s 7 Kinships, a Carnegie Hall fee for Ensemble Connect. It was the third premiere within the span of every week, with earlier performances in Saratoga Springs and Philadelphia.
Wiancko describes 7 Kinships for flute, clarinet, bassoon and horn as a examine of solitude in seven brief actions inside a gaggle context, particularly throughout the social interaction of virtuoso instrumentalists. She explores musically the battle to search out magnificence in solitude by way of the intervals of the seventh and ninth, which for her have a top quality of longing.
In 7 Kinships, Wiancko created fiery musical dialogues in addition to expressive solos for every of the 4 devices. Her potential to make fantastic musical colours, even when working with solely 4 devices, is spectacular. It is the quieter moments, such because the bassoon solo within the fourth motion or that performed by the clarinet within the fifth, nevertheless, that are the soul of the work and reveal Wiancko’s appreciation for the fantastic thing about solitude.
Much like Mozart, Robert Schumann was on the top of his powers when he composed the Piano Quintet in E-flat main, however he knew time was not on his facet. Only 32, he was already affected by bouts of despair that may progress into madness and his early dying. The E-flat main Quintet, with its exuberance and power, belies none of this foreshadowing of the long run.
In his introduction, violist Halam Kim learn a love letter from Robert to his spouse, Clara. It supplied a lens by way of which to expertise the quintet. Even at its darkest moments, this can be a testomony to life, magnificence and love.
The ensemble was as polished and superb as one would count on. Solos have been lovely and beguiling, starting with the exchanges between cellist Laura Andrade and Kim on the viola. Violinist Rubén Rengel’s enjoying was notable for his lean, silvery tone and magnificence. Kang’s enjoying was pure pleasure, particularly within the brisk third motion.
The concluding double fugue, with every entrance clearly and forcefully articulated, was an exhilarating conclusion to a different distinctive recital from Ensemble Connect.
Rick Perdian